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TODAY´S NEWS

Medimix dons new garb

CHOLAYIL has relaunched Medimix in new packaging after 36 years. The objective is to make the soap brand contemporary to attract the younger generation and other consumers as well as make the brand amenable to variants and extensions.

Just cosmetic

Speaking to Business Line here, Mr M.C. Anand Kumar, Senior Vice-President (Sales & Marketing), Dorcas Market Makers (Cholayil's marketing arm), said while neither the ingredients nor the fragrance had been altered, the cosmetic change is major because it comes after 36 years.

The new pack contains information about the ingredients and its clinically-proven benefits, information that the new consumer does not gather from the old pack.

New ad campaign

The brand does not need to depend much on media to communicate the benefits. The new advertising campaign, thus, focuses on the makeover and the younger generation but doesn't overtly point to the benefits, Mr Kumar said.

Research had revealed that consumers wanted a change even in a traditional, ayurvedic soap. Moreover, the packaging was alienating the younger generation - it didn't want to be seen using the soap though it was convinced of its efficacy, Mr Kumar said.

Ray + Keshavan

The soap market has been seeing a lot of changes with a host of launches and tweaking, and while there was no pressure on the company, the relaunch was done with an eye on the future, he explained.

The Bangalore-based design firm Ray + Keshavan is responsible for the new design. "The company sees this as just the beginning of the path to a big and bold future," said Mr Kumar. Though he declined to reveal more details, he did say that the market would see brand extensions in financial 2007-08, if not earlier. The brand has "immense potential" and the company has beefed up its R&D facilities, which includes hiring experienced personnel.

Eyes Rs 230-cr turnover

Medimix aims to achieve a turnover of Rs 230 crore in the next two years.

It has 3.2 per cent of the Rs 4,900-crore, 4.5 lakh tonne soap market.

Lux, Lifebuoy, Godrej No 1, Breeze and Nirma are the top five brands commanding 51 per cent market share. Medimix has a good market in the South and the West, said Mr Kumar.